Deleted Scenes and Absentminded Observations
by Prieva
Summary: Yukio and Rin centric. Each chapter will be a look at their relationship with each other and with their friends; includes missing scenes, and totally fabricated ficlets. No romance, no yaoi. Maybe fluff.
1. The Invisible Superheroes

**The Invisible Superheroes**

_Inspired by 'next to normal's' song _Superboy and the Invisible Girl

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><p>Yukio was used to being in the spotlight.<p>

Not always for the best of reasons, of course.

First, he was one part of a set of twins; from a very young age, he and his brother realized that people could not help but be a tad bit fascinated by them. They'd coo, and laugh, and ask them all sorts of questions about each other. When they were young it was fun and they lapped it up; but, inevitably, as they got older, _it _started to get older. He was sure it must be a common thing to happen in the lives of twins all over the world. One day it just wasn't fun anymore, to be stared at and asked questions.

At some point you start to get angry because you feel like you're not seen as a person, but as a thing (a strange and wondrous thing). At some point you get angry at your twin for existing in the first place and making you special at all.

Then you get older still and get over that and just start to live.

Then there was his mind; again, from a young age he'd been creative and verbal, eager to learn. His father, his brother, and his teachers all encouraged him to do everything he wanted, and everything he could. He slowly gained knowledge, knowledge that sometimes surpassed those his own age. People stared at him and whispered about the 'genius' walking the same halls as them.

This, at least, he could handle a little bit better.

He couldn't forget about the day he was given the official title of 'Exorcist' either. The youngest exorcist ever known? Nope, definitely cannot forget that.

Men and women years older than him had to share their offices, their supplies, their lives with a child who had reached the same professional skill level as themselves—it didn't always go over well, but he found that the most mature, and therefore more worthy people of his time and effort, didn't let it bother them.

He'd had to do all of his training in secret from the one person who he'd have liked to share it with the most though. He couldn't go to Rin when he'd done especially well on an exam, or when he'd succeeded in completing another round level at the batting cages—no matter how proud or excited he was he had to pretend that nothing was different. And sometimes it sucked.

But he knew why he was keeping this part of his life (and their father's life) a secret from Rin. It was important to do so (not that he'd necessarily agreed in the very beginning when he was only 7).

He knew that he was doing the right thing. He was learning how to protect people from things they didn't know of, and from the things they couldn't protect themselves from. Most importantly, he was learning how to help his brother, or how to save him should the need arise.

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><p>Rin didn't know how to feel about being the centre of attention. Did he like it, or dislike it? <em>Should<em> he like it, or should he _dislike _it?

He'd always kind of had attention put on him; his father told stories about how when he would take he and his brother out as infants that people would stop him in the street and gush over his twins.

The whole twin thing has never really stopped; it just died down a little. Not that he cares really. People can't help but be curious, and he gets that. But there is a line of course. Some questions are just a little too...intense, and totally not anyone's business.

Then there was the fighting and the intense anger that got him into trouble more times than he can count. Teachers would give him time-outs, detentions, trips to the principal's office...all of these 'officials' watching him and labelling him as a lost cause. His father telling him otherwise, but still watching him and telling the others in the monastery to do the same.

He especially feels like the centre of attention when he's in his Cram School classes at True Cross and can tell just by the looks his professors give him that they _know _who and what he is.

He feels it when he's sitting at his desk chair in his dorm, supposedly studying but really not, and can feel his brother looking at him. At first it made him angry, feeling Yukio's eyes on him; it could have been because he'd just found out that his brother's life (or most of it) has been hidden from him, or that just a few hours ago he'd had a gun pointed at his face by the one staring him down. But he eventually figured out on his own that Yukio probably couldn't help but be curious about Rin either. Sure, maybe there was some resentment in there too (and how could Rin blame him? Their father's death, while not his fault, still hangs over the both of them), but Yukio has shared a life with him and now he's suddenly someone slightly different than he was before.

Ok, a lot different.

He always lets his tail free from his body when they're at home in their dorm, and he knows that Yukio stares at it from time to time. Not to mention the teeth or the ears, or the fingernails, which he has to cut every day lest they become too long and sharp.

But his friends (he's never had friends before) don't know any of this.

They don't know anything about his father, or his _biological _father. They don't know anything about what happened one terrible night that changed him forever. They don't know anything about him or Yukio.

He feels as though he's wearing a mask for the world that doesn't know about him. And he's never prided himself on being a good liar. He doesn't like having to hide himself, even though he knows why he does it.

He knows it's for both _their _safety, and his own.

But he has this power inside of him; he can feel it. A warmth that's in the centre of his very being. He knows that it's something terrible...and that it comes from someone terrible, but why can't it be used for good? Why couldn't he use it to save someone, and to protect people?

Why can he not use his flames for a gentler purpose, like his father wanted?

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><p><em>I know what it's like to be invisible, to have to hide and to pretend.<em>

_All I want to do is protect him._

_All I want is to be strong enough to protect everyone._

_I just want to help people._

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><p><strong>AN: **This is literally the first thing I have written in months. My muse left me completely. Utterly. I haven't drawn, written...I've hardly read anything. Then a couple of weeks ago I started hearing the words again, and I've been so excited to get to typing. Honestly, this isn't even the first one I was thinking of writing, but it's the first one that wrote itself, so...yeah.

So, to try and explain: each chapter will not be in relation to each other unless I specifically say so. They're each just their own individual ideas that have come into my mind; some of them are going to be funny, some of them cute, some of them sad. Whatever I think of, really. _  
><em>


	2. Feelings of a Troubled Heart

**Feelings of a Troubled Heart**

_Inspired by Episode 17_

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><p><em> We will take Sir Pheles' gamble. <em>

_ Will he become the saviour of Assiah...or a demon king that will bring upon the destruction of everything?_

_ We have no choice but to see for ourselves._

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><p>Everything had happened, literally, in seconds. He was laying on the ground not ten feet from his brother, where he'd been from the moment Amaimon had managed to throw him to the ground, and from the time he'd crawled to Rin's silent and unmoving side.<p>

The Grigori were silent after their proclamation. There was no sound in his ears, and nothing else mattered but the hair's breadth of space that existed between his brother's skin and the edge of the Paladin's sword; Yukio's breath was held behind his teeth, waiting to be released.

The man moved away and the silence was over. Yukio pushed himself up, wincing from the soreness in his back, his heartbeat loud in his ears—he loudly called Rin's name, though he wasn't aware of just how loud or scared it had sounded to anyone else present.

His mind was moving a mile a minute, thoughts barely discernable. The thought that kept pressing insistently was to get his brother as far away as allowable, and as quickly as possible. Dropping to his knees he reached out and gently rolled Rin on to his back; one hand brushed back the hair from his face while the other immediately sought the pulse on his neck; the steady thrum helped to relax his own erratic heart. Eyes quickly scanned the face that had looked back at him from the mirror his whole life, checked arms and a visible torso for any cuts, wounds or bruises.

It wasn't until Shiemi's quiet, scared voice shocked him out of his reverie that he even remembered his students were there with him, and that they were not alone, or truly welcome.

"Yes, I think he's alright at the moment. Still, I'd like to get him back to our dorm now," Yukio replied, looking to his right at Shiemi and seeing Shima alongside her. To his left he realizes Bon and Izumo also wait.

"Can you help me?" He asked quietly, unused to asking for help.

"Of course Yuki! W-what do you need me to do?" Shiemi asked eagerly.

Yukio reached into his pants pocket and brings out his ring of keys. "Take this. When we get to a door you can use it to bring us directly to the dormitory." When she takes the outstretched keys, she takes them almost reverently. If not for the serious situation Yukio would have almost smiled. "I'd also appreciate it if you could carry Rin's sword."

The sound of a throat clearing brings all of their attention to the man standing above them—Mephisto smiles lazily while gently waving around the red sheath that the students have come accustomed to seeing upon their friend's back.

That's when a hint of apprehension hit her eyes, but still she stands to retrieve the cloth from Mephisto, and the scabbard lying just behind them.

Turning back, Yukio sidled closer and leaned down to get his arms under his brother's shoulders; rising slowly, since he didn't know if Rin may have a broken rib or anything, he brought himself back to a kneeling position. He could feel Rin's head resting on his shoulder, and could feel the heat from his skin travelling through his shirt.

"Sensei, let me help."

Yukio's eyes met Bon's, who stood above and behind Rin. Nodding, he allowed him to keep Rin upright while he turned around. When he saw Rin's arms enter his peripheral vision on either side of his head he braced himself for his brother's weight on his back.

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><p>Bon was scared shitless. Had been since he first entered the forest just yesterday morning, if he were to be completely honest. And things had only gone from slightly nerve-wracking to crap your pants terrible.<p>

He couldn't shake the thought of _'you should have known'. _He'd noticed already Okumura's strange behaviour, his absentminded strength. It didn't make sense, but he let it slide. And now here he was, helping a half-demon, which wasn't inherently bad, in and of itself, but the fact that said half-demon was the son of Satan was something he wasn't quite...sure of.

Watching him laying there on the stone floor, one second away from being crushed by a high-level demon like Amaimon, he wasn't one-hundred percent sure in his heart why he was doing this; all he knew was that he wanted answers, and he couldn't get answers from a dead person. So he helped re-forge the Kurikara; he helped Yukio bring it back to the Vatican's court; he threw it over to Shima to help get it to Rin so that he could be saved from his own demonic blood.

Reaching ground-level and making his way over to the boy who'd he'd shared months of his life with felt like treading thick water; part of him wanted to turn back, to stop going against the tide and return to what he knew.

But Bon was no quitter.

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><p>With Rin settled on his back, head tucked on to Yukio's shoulder, he made sure that his arms were firmly under Rin's knees and then hefted himself upwards. He looked behind him to see Shura watching them with a look akin to anger; their eyes met, and they shared the smallest of nods. Despite the Grigori's ruling, there was still an uncomfortably tense atmosphere within the large, cavernous room, and even though Yukio prided his ability to keep a cool head, even he felt the need to escape.<p>

"Let's go then," he uttered quietly, and began walking through the debris. The others were ahead of him, walking briskly away from the many cold eyes in the room, all of which were trained directly on their mismatched group. He quickly stopped though when he remembered something.

"Can one of you loop his tail through my arm? I don't want it dragging on the ground."

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><p>Though they all knew that Rin was a demon, the request still stopped them short. People just didn't have tails, and people didn't normally have to worry about said appendage dragging on the ground and potentially getting caught in rocks.<p>

When no one moved, Shiemi decided that she could fight her embarrassment this one time; she could feel the blush staining her cheeks as she walked forward, and it only got worse when Yuki gave her an appreciative smile. With her head ducked, she walked behind both of her friends.

"Be sure not to pull on it," Yukio said, in a voice similar to the one used when giving a lesson.

"O-ok."

She'd noticed the tail before (how could she not?). Seeing it now though, creeping out from Rin's pants and falling heavily to the floor, an excited smile grew on her lips. With her free hand she bent down and grabbed it, gently, and rose. The fur touching her skin was very short, but she could feel just how soft it was. It reminded her of the short hairs on a cat's nose. Yukio had shifted one of his arms just enough so that she could put Rin's tail through; as she did so, the exceptionally fluffy end brushed against her hand and she could feel the goosebumps of pleasure raise on her skin.

If it wouldn't have been so strange, she would have loved to rub the tail over her face.

The thought made her hurry at her task, blushing worse than ever. "Everything's good now, Yuki-chan!" She said just a little too loudly, reminiscent of the last words she'd said to Rin as he collapsed against her.

"Thank you, Shiemi-san."

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><p>"Sensei, are you sure you want us to come back with you to your dorm? We could just walk back to ours."<p>

Yukio was standing at a door a ways down the hall from the destroyed entrance of the Grigori's court. He was explaining how to use the key to bring them exactly where they wanted to Shiemi, who was readying the key.

"I was hoping you'd come with Rin and I when I bring him to the swordsmith after he wakes up."

"Ahhh, but, don't you think that all of us will get in the way? What if Okumura doesn't wake up for a long time?" Shima asked, awkwardly pushing his hand through his hair.

"I assure you, none of you will be in the way. And if Rin doesn't wake up within a few hours you can leave." He paused, unsure and hesitant about what to say next. "However, if you'd feel more comfortable leaving now, I would understand completely, and would not hold it against you."

Shima jumped back and raised his arms. "No, no! It's not that! I—"

"We'll stay with you, Okumura-sensei, don't listen to that idiot," Izumo said in her droll voice.

"If you're sure..."

"Yes."

Yukio gulped uncharacteristically as he watched Shima pout. "Ok then. Have you got the door ready, Shiemi-san?"

"Y-yes, I think so!" She squeaked. She turned back to the door where she'd left the key in the lock. Gripping it tightly between her fingers, she closed her eyes. _Imagine the place where you want to be. See it, and the door will bring you there. _The metal warmed in her hand, and she turned the knob.

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><p><em>I thought I woke up...<em>

_ He was back in darkness, but it didn't feel quite the same as before._

_ Maybe it was just a dream...maybe I really am dead._

_ But he could hear something that wasn't there _before. _A beating._

_ Ba bump. Ba bump. Ba bump._

_ Soothing, rhythmic, like water, like...home._

_ Yukio?_

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><p>Izumo was sitting in the cafeteria where she'd had breakfast with her classmates weeks ago when they'd been participating in the Esquire exam (though they didn't know it at the time). She could see the kitchen area in the back, dark and closed off. She sat at a table alone, arms crossed, eyebrows crossed contemplatively.<p>

From the beginning she had had respect for Okumura-sensei. She knew that for him to be an exorcist at his level and at his age that he must be very talented and very intelligent. She respected him for keeping calm, and for his no-nonsense attitude.

So when he'd begged for their help in Konekomaru's hospital room she was very surprised.

Even though she knew that he and Rin were brothers, twins, they didn't often interact as such (not in front of her or the others, at least to her knowledge). To see him and to listen to him speak about their demonic heritage, and to know that he was willing to kill his only family to save him from himself, made her thoughts of him shift.

She could see now that he wasn't a cold person, as she'd originally assumed. When she heard him call for Rin, telling him to wake up, she could hear the desperation in his voice (she knew it when she heard it, after all). She saw how gentle he was when he moved Rin, when he carried him. She even saw how he leaned his head against his brother's, almost like he was seeking a physical comfort from him.

No, Yukio Okumura was not who she thought he was. But she liked this one better.

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><p><em>Where are you Rin?<em>

Yukio sighed from his place on the floor. The desk-chair he'd been sitting in prior had started to get uncomfortable, so he'd decided to sit on the floor beside Rin's bed instead.

He'd already checked him for broken bones, ribs especially, but he'd been fairly certain he had nothing to worry about when he could feel no abnormalities, nor find any bruising on Rin's torso. He'd buttoned his shirt back up, made sure that his tail wasn't under him in a way that would be uncomfortable.

He looked out the window and saw the first streaks of purple coming into the blue. It had been just over two hours since they'd come to the dorm, and still Rin wasn't waking up. He rested his head on the comforter, hands sitting limply in his lap. He could feel Blacky's warm heat on the outside of his right thigh, where his brother's familiar rested against him. He'd thought maybe he'd be able to hear the demon cat speak as Rin could, but so far he was unable; Rin had told him that Blacky could understand him though.

So when he heard a quiet, distressed mewl, he reached a hand out and brush the fur along the cat's back. "It's ok, Blacky," he whispered, "he's just sleeping. He'll wake up soon."

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><p>Bon and Shiemi had fallen asleep at one of the long tables in the cafeteria. Izumo was still sitting of by herself, and she didn't say anything when Shima had gotten up and left the room.<p>

He couldn't remember ever seeing the Okumuras' room...did they share a room, have separate ones? He didn't even know that. But he felt like he needed to apologize to Yukio for what he had unintentionally implied before.

Because he _wasn't _uncomfortable around him or Rin; well, not _really. _Of course he was a little put-off, but who wouldn't be after having a revelation dropped on them such as this, and in the particular manner in which it was given? He'd known Rin for months now, and there was nothing about him that would lead him to believe he was a demon, or that he would hurt them (_but maybe that's the whole point—maybe he's trying to trick all of us). _Yukio had explained to all of them about the Kurikara and how it worked to keep Rin's powers in check; he'd told them that Rin didn't even _know _he was a half-demon all of these years, let alone the son of Satan; he knew why Rin lost control the way he did.

So why was he so scared?

_Because it's a scary situation, no matter how you spin it._ Okumura-sensei was smart enough to know that it would take time for things to settle down between everyone; he had to know that they weren't heartless people, and that they couldn't be blamed for being scared.

He could see an open door with light spilling out into the hallway just a few feet down the corridor. He quickened his pace a little, but stopped when he heard the quiet lull of voices.

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><p>Yukio could feel his eyes getting heavy. Half lying on a bed wasn't helping the situation. As he jerked his eyes open for what felt like the millionth time he noticed the end of Rin's tail twitching ever so slightly where it rested against his calf.<p>

With one hand he lifted and moved Blacky up on to the comforter, while he raised himself to his knees, suddenly feeling much more awake.

"Rin?" His voice came out a groggy croak, and he cleared his throat as softly as he could. His brother's lips had turned downward into a scowl, and his eyebrows had done the same; he could see his eyes moving madly underneath their lids.

"Rin, come on, wake up now," he encouraged. He looked away from Rin's face when he saw Blacky move up along his other side. The demon was watching his brother's face intently as well, and he couldn't help but wonder if they were speaking to each other.

When he looked back he saw the barest sliver of blue looking back at him.

"Yukio?"

Rin's voice was rough and sleep-addled. He looked very confused, with his eyes glazed, and Yukio felt it when Rin's tail lifted and moved, coming closer to lay itself across Rin's stomach.

"Is this a dream?"

He sounded so lost. "No, no it's not a dream Rin. We're back in the dorm, we're home." He paused. "You're going to be okay."

Rin's eyes were a little clearer, and he was looking around, noting the familiarity of their new home. He noticed Blacky sitting patiently at his side and patted him gently with a faintly trembling hand. His gaze returned to Yukio's, and he could see the emotions flickering there.

"What did I do?" Rin asked fearfully.

"The Kurikara cracked," he answered. "You lost control of the flames."

Rin swallowed deeply. "And no one was hurt?"

Yukio shook his head fervently. "No, no one was hurt." He thought he saw something, the beginning of tears, but Rin looked away and they were gone. There was silence between them, only broken by their breaths going in and out. Just as Yukio was about to ask Rin if he felt alright, his brother spoke up, his voice hauntingly even.

"I thought I'd died."

Yukio's breath stilled. "What do you mean?"

Unblinkingly, Rin returned his eyes to his twin's. "It was dark. I couldn't see. I couldn't feel anything. It was just...nothing. I thought I'd died, and that was where I would be forever."

When Yukio saw his twin's trembling lips his hand instinctively found and latched together with Rin's. "You weren't dead, Rin. I promise, you were never dead."

"But I was!" He responded vehemently, wetly. "The me who I thought I was, that you've known since you were born, he was dead. All that was left was a monster, a demon."

"Rin..." His voice shook. Yukio can't remember when Rin has lost it like this since their father died just a few months ago.

"I don't want to become a monster, Yukio."

Yukio took in a shaky breath; this is the moment he's been training for since he was 7 years old. This is the moment when you have to acknowledge that you could lose your twin.

"Rin," Yukio leaned closer until their foreheads touched, eyes still locked with one another. "I won't let you become a monster. I swear it to you. You have to do your hardest to learn to control your powers, to not let them control _you. _But..."

Rin squeezed his hand, nails biting against his flesh. "Thank you," he whispered.

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><p>Shima hurried away from the door as fast as he could without making any noise.<p>

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><p><strong>AN: **This took me, like, almost 6 hours to write. But once I started, I couldn't stop. I try to go and do some studying, but it would nag me in the back of my head, so I'd come back to my computer and work on it, and work on it, till this came to be.

Ever since the first time I watched Episode 17, where it goes from Angel lifting his blade from Rin's neck, to Rin and the whole gang back at the swordsmith's place in Kyoto, I've been obsessed with what happened in between. I honestly had dreams about it (and my dreams are vivid; it was basically like watching the anime). I wanted to see what happened, what people were thinking...everything. I'm pretty satisfied with this, and I hope anyone who takes the time to read it enjoys it too.


	3. Day at the Beach

**Day at the Beach**

_Inspired by the omake at the end of Volume 2 of the manga_

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><p>The young Esquires didn't care <em>why <em>their principal had given them permission to go to a beach outside of campus—they hoped it was for their performances during their exam—but they loved it. The sun was so bright; the clouds were few, but fluffy white, and they were all managing to get along on this once-in-a-while deal.

They'd decided to wait until everyone was finished in the change rooms so that they could head to their spot on the beach together—there were a lot of people out after all, and they were still a little jittery from the atta—_exam _just the day before.

Shima looked beyond Konekomaru as he walked out. "Where's Okumura?"

"Ummm, which one?" The short boy asked after a moment.

Shima started. It wasn't often that he or anyone else had to differentiate between the two boys. "Well, either I suppose. I didn't even see them go into the change room."

Konekomaru shrugged and stopped to wait with their nearly completed group. After another 10 minutes passed and there was still no sign of the two boys they all agreed to walk a little ways down the beach to see if maybe they were already out there.

And they were. Just not looking the way any of them expected.

"W-what are you two doing?" Shima asked quietly, arms limp and neck drooped.

A quiet _'hmm?'_ was the harmonious reply they received. Both of the Okumura's looked upwards at their peers and students; both were sitting on a towel side by side, and were shaded by a large umbrella perched in the sand.

"You don't even have bathing suits on!" Shima complained.

And they didn't. The twins both wore cargo shorts, sandals, t-shirts, and plain button up shirts over-top of that. Little did they know, Rin could no longer go in public shirtless, lest his abnormal tail be seen. So, he would have to remain on the beach, fully dressed, and watch his friends swimming in what looked like the most refreshing water he'd ever laid eyes on.

Yukio on the other hand...

"Don't you want to go swimming, Rin? Yuki-chan?" Shiemi asked, pulling on her fingers nervously—she wasn't used to wearing a bathing suit, let alone wearing one where other people could _see _her, so she was hoping she'd have her closest friends there to help take her mind off how uncomfortable she was.

"W-well, I kind of have a headache, so I don't really feel like swimming today," Rin laughed.

Bon's eyes narrowed at the lame, and very obvious, excuse, but if the guy didn't want to go in the water then he wasn't going to bother with it. Then his eyes shifted to the young teacher. "What about you, Sensei?"

Yukio's back got straighter and his hand lifted to push back his glasses. "Someone has to supervise."

Rin snorted. "Yeah, right, 'supervise'. You just don't want to take your shirt off in front of them." He said lowly.

But not low enough for no one to miss it. All eyes were now trained on Yukio, whose face slowly turned pink (something that _none _of them, bar Rin, and maybe Shiemi, had ever seen).

"That is _not _why, Rin!" He whispered vehemently. "I am your teacher; therefore I should supervise the activity."

"There's a lifeguard."

"He's not a trained Exorcist, now is he?"

"No, but at least he's not afraid to take his shirt off in front of someone with a pair of eyes."

"I am not afraid to take my shirt off!"

"Then do it!"

"No!"

"Yes!"

"NO!"

"YES!"

The group watched in shock as the two of them continued their verbal spar; sure, they'd seen the twins goad each other before, but this in front of them spoke of a deeper relationship that had been invisible to them before now. They jumped when Rin's hand grabbed at Yukio's face, and they realized he'd grabbed the glasses right off his brother's face and thrown them over his shoulder. Shiemi's jaw dropped when Rin wrestled Yukio to the ground and somehow got his button-up off his shoulders.

"Hey, you guys..." Shima started nervously, hands raised defensively.

But nothing could be heard through the growling, and the _'stop it, Rin'_s, or the _'I am making you take this shirt off, moley-four-eyes''! , _or even the _'I swear to God I will shoot you'_s.

"Ok, that is enough!"

Everyone stopped at Izumo's harsh bluntness.

"Rin, get off of your brother! If he doesn't want to go swimming, _for whatever reason, _then just leave him be! You got it?"

For a moment nobody moved. When Izumo still hadn't taken her hands off her hips, Rin finally released a frustrated sigh and got up from where he'd pinned down Yukio. In silence Izumo walked to the water's edge, and in silence the rest followed her.

Rin sat with his arms across his knees, chin resting atop the pile of limbs. He felt when Yukio lifted himself up from the ground, when he straightened his side of the towel, and when he too sat facing the water in the same fashion as he.

"They're just moles, Yukio," he mumbled. "Nobody gives a shit but you."

Yukio just pouted.

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><p><strong>AN: **This can be considered fluff, right? I think it's cute and funny anyway. In case nobody knew, the omake I'm talking about shows Yukio and there's all these little arrows pointing to the moles all over his face and arms. And he's saying "They're multiplying" or something like that. It just makes me laugh how self-conscious he is about them, and I just know that he probably has them all over his chest and back and legs.

I realized after reading chapter 2 over again that I have a couple of spelling and grammatical errors. Also, I shifted tenses in a few spots. If this were something for class, or for a publication, I would go back and edit it, but I can't find the want to do so here.


	4. Boys' Day In

**Boys' Day In**

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><p><em>How exactly did I get myself into this?<em>

The 'this' that you are referring to is the somewhat chaotic mess that one of the spare rooms in your dorm has turned into.

_I guess I brought it on myself, _you think with a sigh.

You've noticed, in the past couple of weeks, that your brother has been acting tired and listless when he isn't training with Shura, or attempting to light the candles she left with him for when she wasn't around. You can tell that Rin misses spending his classes with the peers he's come to know; you know that your brother is trying fairly hard, but that he's suffering for it in other ways.

So when you hear Shima complaining about not having enough room in their dorm to have their plans of hanging out and relaxing this weekend, you offered the space in yours to them.

_"Just don't tell Rin I already said you could come over...why don't you ask him if you can yourselves?" you'd said._

"Hey, Yukio, have you got that peanut butter softened up yet?" Rin asks you excitedly as he leans into the kitchen.

You can't help the soft laughter that escapes. "Yes, Rin, I think it's about perfect now." With a last stir of the knife, you pull the heavy metal utensil from the jar of now softened peanut butter.

Rin has come all the way into the kitchen now, and walked right up to the counter to stand beside you. His tail waves in excitement behind him. "Here, I'll bring it in. You can grab the marshmallows."

Looking at your brother beside you, you can see the healthy flush of Rin's skin, see the upturned lips, and the happiness in his eyes. His hand reaches for the jar, but even when his hand is over yours, waiting to move away, you hold on still. His eyes glance up to meet yours, and there's a silent question in them.

You speak softly, a reminder of the brother he's been used to for so many years. "Are you having fun, Rin?"

The blinding smile, full of sharp teeth and dimples, is the only answer you need.

* * *

><p><strong>AN: **I have no idea where this came from.

The peanut butter and marshmallows will be explained in the next chapter (which, YES, is a continuation of this one).


	5. Peanut Butter

**Peanut Butter is one of my favourite things**

_As stated in the Author's Note at the end of the last chapter, this is a direct continuation of that chapter._

_This is inspired by my wacky, wonderful, creative Dad._

* * *

><p>"Where <em>are <em>those two? They do realize that we have hours of comedies to get through, right?" Shima whined from his place on the floor.

"I think Okumura mentioned that he just had one last snack to bring out," Konekomaru replied.

Shima groaned dramatically. Bon huffed as he grabbed a handful of popcorn, "As if we need any more food out here."

It was then that they could hear the sound of running footsteps coming up the stairs, followed by Rin calling out, before he could even be seen, "Start the movie!"

Shima grinned and grabbed the remote, pressing play immediately. The lights were low, and the screen lit the room in a ghostly blue-white light. Seconds later, just as the opening scenes and credits were rolling on, the Okumura twins bounded into the room and landed on the couch side by side.

"You two sure are excited," Konekomaru said with a laugh.

Yukio's glasses reflected the light of the screen, but he could see the smile that graced his face. "Comedies are about the only thing Rin and I both enjoy."

Shima was about to ask Yukio a question about what other movies he liked, but was rudely interrupted by Bon.

"Why the hell are you holding a jar of peanut butter?" Bon's voice was a mixture of confusion and repulsion. When the others looked they too noticed Rin holding the mysterious jar of peanut butter, and a mysteriously innocent expression on his face as well.

"I'm going to eat it, duh," Rin said, as if it were the most obvious thing in the world. "Pass me a marshmallow Yukio."

The three watched in morbid fascination as their young teacher reached a hand inside the bag of marshmallows he had sitting in his lap, bringing out two and passing one to his brother; they gulped as they saw Rin unscrew the lid from the jar, tossing it on the table their feet rested on; their jaws dropped when the twins dipped their marshmallows into the peanut butter and simultaneously popped them into their mouths, sighs of contentment leaving them.

"You two are disgusting," Shima mumbled.

Rin and Yukio both grinned mischievously. "So we've been told."

* * *

><p><strong>AN: **Yes, my father eats marshmallows and peanut butter. And yes, it is disgusting. At least to me. But it's quirky, and I thought it would be funny to give the twins a funny little quirk.

In case you're wondering, comedies actually are the only thing that both Rin and Yukio like; at the end of the manga volume 1, they had to circle which genres of manga were their favourite, and comedy was the only one that they both circled. So I just extended that to films and television as well :)


	6. this is how the world ends

**this is how the world ends**

_Inspired by Episode 23_

* * *

><p>The laughter is what wakes you up.<p>

You recognize it from your nightmares.

It's the same laughter that makes you think of blue flames, blood, and death.

You open your eyes, and you want to squeeze them shut again, will away the images, pray that it's all just in your head.

But it's not.

You've woken up in one of your worst nightmares.

And as the scream tears out of your throat, you can feel your heart cracking inside you, can hear the pieces falling and hitting the ground.

Because you've been here before; you've seen what this _thing _does to people; you were there when your father died, killing himself to protect you.

And you know that your brother, if he's given the chance, will do the same.

And you know that your world will end if you lose him too.

* * *

><p><strong>AN: **I should also mention that the title for this was also inspired by one of my favourite poems, T.S. Eliot's "The Hollow Men".

Every time I watch that last scene in Episode 23, I swear I can feel my heart breaking for Rin; I can only start to imagine the fear that he had waking up to that, his brother, twin, only family, possessed by Satan, just like his father. And we all know how that ended. And I feel like Rin's world would start to unravel at that point because something inside of him would just _know _that this could end really, really badly.


	7. It's Like Forgetting

**It's like Forgetting**

_Inspired by Episode 24_

* * *

><p>Bon cannot help but be slightly taken aback when all he hears from Okumura is that they have to help Yukio—their teacher, his brother.<p>

They're all hiding in the darkened classroom like frightened rodents; through the window one can see the top of the highest building in the True Cross campus, and can see the shocking blue light. He knows that _Satan _is up there right now, planning on doing god knows what, but they're all here because there's nothing they can do. And that makes him angry. So, so angry.

Through the pain in his chest he can hear Okumura explaining to Kiragakure-sensei what he was able to garner from Satan; he notices that there's a hurried quality to his voice, and a tense tremble. When he moves his eyes to look at the boy, the first thing he notices is the shiny quality of his eyes. It shocks him a little, to think that Okumura could be close to tears, but then guilt overcomes him.

_You'd be close to tears too if your twin brother was possessed by Satan, _he thinks.

He starts to feel sadness, and maybe even a little pity, amongst all of the anger that's inside of him, because he knows (and knows that Rin knows) that the chances of Yukio making it out of this are slim. It makes him wonder just how close Rin is to his brother because, if he's honest, he's never seen much interaction between the two that surpassed a teacher-student relationship.

But going from how adamant the boy is about saving his brother, and from the physical clues Bon can see, he'd have to guess that they're a lot closer than he's ever been privy to.

* * *

><p>Shura has seen more than the others ever have. She's seen Yukio grow into who he is now from the time he was a small child. She's seen his determination, his strength, his mind, and even his love. She's seen him when he wasn't the perfect exorcist, student, and brother. She can't help but think that the only people who know the kid better are Shiro and Rin.<p>

She likes to keep an aloof type of demeanour, a coldness that keeps her separate from others; but she feels close to these twins in a way that she hasn't felt since she was Shiro's student. When she's on that roof, battling something she knows she can't beat, she thinks of what Rin is about to lose, and something inside of her hurts. Maybe it's her heart, but who knows.

When she's laying there on the ground, body aching and burning all at once, she thinks to herself, _I don't want to see this. _She doesn't want to see Yukio fall. She doesn't want to see Rin fall. She doesn't want to see what would happen afterwards in either situation.

Then she hears Rin calling, screaming, pleading, with his brother, and her body goes numb. She'd never heard Rin sound as scared as he did then, begging and yelling for Yukio. She hears Moriyama drop to the ground heavily nearby, and she drags herself to her as quickly as she can. She tries not to look, not to listen to the fight that's going on. She doesn't want to see. But then she can't help but hear a voice, one she thought she'd never hear again, and her eyes can't help but move to the boy she thought was gone for good. She can see his hand outstretched and a pained grimace on his face, and the most scared voice she'd ever heard come out of those lips.

They were so close to each other, hands almost touching, and she couldn't help but feel the lightness of hope. Their fingers intertwined so naturally, and the smallest of gasps escaped her.

Then he fell.

Her ears buzz from the sound of the bullet leaving the barrel. She can't stop looking at him, just laying there on the ground. Even when Yukio falls to his knees and screams, she can't stop watching the other and the blood slowly extending past his body. She cannot remember a time when she's felt so helpless.

Her hands clutch at Moriyama, who's laying silently in her arms; she sends a quiet prayer to wherever they go, thanking whoever that hears them, that the girl isn't awake to see two of her best friends like this. She knows she has to get up and get moving, to save herself and whoever else she can, but she's still struck silent, like a statue of stone. She watches as that tool of a kid raises a gun to his temple—a flair of her old temper comes through at that moment—and then his brother raises himself from the ground.

She's never seen Rin like this; never seen him with tears in his eyes (tears that aren't from anger or frustration). She can't think of the last time she saw Yukio cry either, to think of it. They're just looking at each other, crying, and in a way, they're both asking to not be left alone. Rin's still got an arm wrapped around himself, staunching a still-healing wound, but he nonetheless grips his other arm tightly around Yukio (and she's happy when he doesn't pull away, even leans into the hug a little).

* * *

><p><strong>AN: **I feel a little like Shura isn't quite right...I really do feel like she's not as cold and aloof as she may come across, and that she feels a lot more for people than she lets out, but I still feel like maybe I overdid it.

Also, the title for this chapter comes from Regina Spektor's song "Eet", which I highly recommend listening to; lately I've been listening to it and it reminds me a tad bit of Yukio. And in a general sense, I'd say to listen to her whole album "Far". She's an amazing artist, truly.


	8. Mirrors

**Mirrors**

_Inspired by my missing twin, and what could have been._

* * *

><p>It wasn't often that people got the two of them mixed up. Sure, they had their similar features, but there were more differences to note than anything.<p>

For example, the glasses were a dead giveaway to tell which Yukio was. Even without the glasses, Yukio's face had very distinctive moles that his brother's did not. Another was their hair—while the same shade of black, and even about the same length, Yukio's was always combed while Rin's was always just a tad messier. After Rin's secret came out there was another thing about him that made him stand apart from his brother: the black swooshing tail.

Those were all physical things, though. Taking in their personalities, temperaments, emotional maturity...they were miles apart from each other.

But if you asked anyone who knew them well enough, they would say that there was just _something _about them, something they couldn't quite put their fingers on, that made them think that the Okumura brothers were more similar than one would first assume.

Maybe it was how they would laugh together, synchronized in a way that was almost eerie; or how when the whole class was working together out in the field, collecting herbs and samples for Yukio's lab, the two of them would be able to work around each other wordlessly and without bother; it could have been how they sat together, watched each other, smiled like each other, grimaced like each other, and got annoyed with each other.

Maybe it was because, despite all of their differences, they still relied on, loved, and challenged each other, and that made them the same.

Maybe.


	9. Tug

**Tug**

_Inspired by Chapter 30 of the manga_

* * *

><p>Rin didn't really understand why after a certain age the school decided to separate Yukio and himself, but he knows that he wasn't happy about it, and that they were both actually quite upset on the first day they had to part and go to different classrooms. Before that, they did everything together. Not a day went by where Rin and Yukio were apart for more than an hour at a time, and that was pushing it.<p>

It was also at this time that Yukio began to be bullied.

Yes, he'd been teased before, but that was all it ever got to because Rin was always there to shout down (or beat down) the ones who dared open their mouths. It had never had a chance to escalate. But then they were apart and had differing lunch and break schedules, so Yukio was much more vulnerable.

Rin can remember the very first time that he became aware of the connection that he and his twin shared—he'd been in class, sitting at his desk working on something or other, when all of a sudden he'd felt a pressure in his chest. His pencil had stilled against the paper, and he could feel his heart pounding, could hear only it in his head. With every beat he could hear his brother's squeaky six-year-old voice shouting/screaming/calling his name.

He still can't remember what happened between the moments when he realized it was _Yukio's _voice in his and when he next became aware of himself. All he knows is that one second he was in his classroom and the next he was behind a Quonset hut standing in front of his brother with knuckles bloodied and three young boys on the ground crying and clutching their faces. His breath was harsh against his teeth, and every muscle hurt with how tense they were being drawn. Behind him he could hear his brother crying, and anger flooded his veins again.

His teacher later explained to their father that he'd jumped up in a rage, his chair squealing against the tiled floor, and run pell-mell out the door. She'd followed him as best she could, but he'd been so fast, and she could not catch up until he had already taken down the boys who'd been assaulting his brother.

Her astonishment at how he'd _known _was something he never forgot.

* * *

><p>Yukio, being the curious autodidact that he is, has read a lot concerning the psychology and biology of twins. He quickly learned that there is a lot of information out there, and not all of it is factual—what he can find <em>a lot<em> of is myths and superstitions. Parapsychologists and pseudo scientists seem to really love twins.

What he is really searching for is a question that everyone loves to ask, but which no one can answer: Do twins have a mental connection to one another?

Biologically speaking, Yukio realizes that since he and Rin are fraternal twins, and are no more genetically alike than any other set of siblings, that this shouldn't be the case. They did not come from one egg that suddenly decided to split in two; they were not at one time a single being. They have always had their own brains, and their own bodies, they just happened to share a womb at the same time.

Yukio has learned that logic doesn't always equal reality though.

If that were the case, then Rin should never have been able to hear him and find him when they were just six years old when he was being beaten to a pulp. There is no logical explanation (especially not when he factors in what his brother has told him about the incident).

And if he's honest with himself, he knows exactly what his brother is talking about. Even though Rin has always been able to find him when he was alone and in trouble, Yukio has always been able to feel Rin when he experiences extremes of emotion—not that he knew that at first, of course.

There was one evening when they were nine that Yukio had been in his room doing homework, and he'd been checking the clock every few minutes because it was getting late and dark and his brother still wasn't home yet. Just when he'd been about to get up and find their father he'd fallen back into his chair, breaths coming in gasps. A hand clenched the sweater he wore in fear. He'd been so scared he was having an asthma attack, or something even more serious, but he soon realized that what he was feeling felt wrong, different.

He would swear to Rin later that he could _feel _his heart beating like mad, but when he'd reached up to check his pulse it was slow and normal. Energy sizzled through his limbs, and he could tell that this was not fear that he was feeling (that was something he was familiar with), but anger. More than anger, it was absolute _rage. _

When Rin finally returned it was to meet Yukio outside on the cement steps leading up to their door. He'd known, without knowing, that Rin had gotten in some kind of trouble, had been fighting, had probably been hurt, and he had to wait and see if it were true.

He had known.

* * *

><p>Rin can't count how many times he heard Yukio in his head, just calling his name, and then suddenly his feet carried him to where his brother was. He can't explain it, and doesn't really try to. He knows that Yukio starts reading things, but he doesn't get many answers either.<p>

Then they started happening less and less, though, tapering off when they were probably about eleven or twelve (around the time when Yukio got a little taller, filled out a little more, and started getting recognized for how smart and talented he was). It seemed that Rin's connection and usefulness to his brother was now gone.

* * *

><p>Yukio never stops feeling the tugs to his heart.<p>

Rin is such an emotional cannonball that he doubts they'll ever completely go away.

It isn't all bad, though. He loves when he can feel even just his ghostly comprehensions of the absolute joy his brother sometimes experiences; but those times seem to come far and few between the older they get. No, he's much more apt to get a nice dose of rage than happiness these days. He worries about it, how angry his brother is, and how it will affect his demonic awakening (because it has to happen someday).

The day it actually does happen, Yukio swears he almost died.

He'd known something was wrong, had tried calling their father from his new room at the Academy, but hadn't gotten an answer. Earlier, something had happened to his brother, and there was an underlying buzz in Yukio's head that was not going away.

He had never felt so much fear from Rin before in his entire life. It stole the breath right out of his lungs, took the strength from his legs. Still he trudged on, worried/afraid/angry. But what he gets from Rin still doesn't prepare him for the end result.


End file.
